Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Cane River Middle

Q: Is Cane River Middle a good school?

Cane River Middle ranks 341 st of 773 North Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

341^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 773 North Carolina Middle Schools

Better than 56% of North Carolina middle schools

Summary

Cane River Middle is a public middle school located in Burnsville, North Carolina, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 180 students. It is part of the Yancey County Schools district, which is ranked 126 out of 242 districts in North Carolina and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Cane River Middle has consistently performed well on state assessments, with proficiency rates often exceeding the district and state averages. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, Cane River Middle's 8th-grade students achieved 58.9% proficiency in both Mathematics and Reading, compared to the Yancey County Schools average of 62.6% and 55.4%, respectively, and the North Carolina state average of 48.7% and 54.2%. The school also has a relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 10.5 to 12.8 students per teacher over the past few years, which is lower than the nearby East Yancey Middle (12.9) and the other schools in the analysis.

Cane River Middle has a significant population of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, with free and reduced lunch rates ranging from 41.46% to 52.78% over the past few years. This is lower than the nearby East Yancey Middle (62.65%) but higher than the other schools in the analysis. While the school has maintained a strong academic performance, there are opportunities for Cane River Middle to further improve its performance, particularly in comparison to the top-performing schools in the region, such as Madison Middle School and North Buncombe Middle.

210

Students ?

11.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,216

Per pupil spending ?

98.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1128 Cane River School Road
Burnsville, NC 28714-9803

(828) 682-2202

District: Yancey County Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

88.6%

Hispanic:

8.6%

Two or more races:

1.9%

See top rated North Carolina middle schools

Compare Cane River Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 65th percentile in 2015 → 56th in 2025

Strengths

✓Above the North Carolina median (56th percentile)

✓Small classes — about 12 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 9 percentile points since 2015

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school55%

District avg53%

North Carolina avg54%

341^st of 773

North Carolina public middle schools ?

Top 44%▼ down 9 pts since 2015

From top 35% (2015) to top 44% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of North Carolina Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 2Middle Schools in the Yancey County Schools

126^th of 242Yancey County Schools among North Carolina districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	54.0	341 of 773	55.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	75.8	163 of 793	79.4%	★★★★☆
2023	70.0	206 of 784	73.7%	★★★★☆
2022	69.4	209 of 786	73.4%	★★★★☆
2021	70.8	192 of 741	74.1%	★★★★☆
2019	60.6	282 of 737	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	71.2	178 of 691	74.2%	★★★★☆
2017	74.3	155 of 694	77.7%	★★★★☆
2016	70.8	177 of 692	74.4%	★★★★☆
2015	63.3	246 of 705	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2014	76.5	136 of 627	78.3%	★★★★☆
2013	72.4	154 of 673	77.1%	★★★★☆
2012	78.7	102 of 662	84.6%	★★★★☆
2011	85.6	28 of 648	95.7%	★★★★★
2010	80.7	85 of 640	86.7%	★★★★☆
2009	83.0	62 of 630	90.2%	★★★★★
2008	71.4	162 of 620	73.9%	★★★★☆
2007	70.7	161 of 606	73.4%	★★★★☆
2006	70.4	154 of 598	74.2%	★★★★☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	73.9	48 of 449	89.3%	★★★★☆
2018	73.7	50 of 475	89.5%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	47.3	390 of 733	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	77.2	146 of 738	80.2%	★★★★☆
2023	71.5	177 of 731	75.8%	★★★★☆
2022	71.0	187 of 733	74.5%	★★★★☆
2021	68.5	195 of 706	72.4%	★★★★☆
2019	59.7	278 of 684	59.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	73.2	158 of 656	75.9%	★★★★☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2022	58.0	221 of 450	50.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	71.9	96 of 448	78.6%	★★★★☆
2019	44.6	312 of 416	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	73.7	8 of 127	93.7%	★★★★★

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2021	50.5	237 of 522	54.6%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	48.7	352 of 729	51.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	75.6	106 of 743	85.7%	★★★★☆
2023	73.4	130 of 735	82.3%	★★★★☆
2022	82.3	62 of 689	91.0%	★★★★★
2021	77.2	79 of 633	87.5%	★★★★☆
2019	66.7	160 of 639	75.0%	★★★★☆
2018	75.8	88 of 604	85.4%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	58.2	277 of 733	62.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	71.5	187 of 751	75.1%	★★★★☆
2023	66.8	214 of 747	71.4%	★★★★☆
2022	65.1	232 of 748	69.0%	★★★☆☆
2021	68.8	195 of 711	72.6%	★★★★☆
2019	60.5	267 of 697	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	68.0	202 of 665	69.6%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	North Carolina percentile	Rating
2025	32.9	468 of 649	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	58.6	253 of 652	61.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	56.1	270 of 656	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	52.6	296 of 658	55.0%	★★★☆☆
2021	54.5	263 of 632	58.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	46.5	350 of 624	43.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	54.0	271 of 596	54.5%	★★★☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Disabled (2022)89th percentile+16 vs school

Male (2025)62nd percentile+6 vs school

Hispanic (2021)55th percentile-19 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)52nd percentile-4 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2022)51st percentile-23 vs school

Female (2025)47th percentile-9 vs school

White (2025)28th percentile-28 vs school

By subject vs North Carolina (2024-2025) ?

Science75%+15 vs state

Reading53%~ state avg

Mathematics52%~ state avg

★

No ratings yet

Be the first to rate Cane River Middle and help other families decide.

Rate Cane River Middle

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

Reviews

No written reviews yet. If you know this school, be the first to share what stands out.

Schools Near Cane River Middle

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				EOG Mathematics (2025)				EOG Reading (2025)				EOG Science (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOG Mathematics 5th Grade	EOG Mathematics 6th Grade	EOG Mathematics 7th Grade	EOG Mathematics 8th Grade	EOG Reading 5th Grade	EOG Reading 6th Grade	EOG Reading 7th Grade	EOG Reading 8th Grade	EOG Science 5th Grade	EOG Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Cane River Middle	Public	6-8	1128 Cane River School Road	Burnsville	28714	Yancey County	Yancey County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 682-2202	210	18	11.7	98.1%	186 (88.6%)	1 (0.5%)	18 (8.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.9%)	54	341^st of 773 public middle schools	55.9%		75.8	163^rd of 793 public middle schools	79.4%	178		45.6	52.4	58.9		49.4	50.8	58.9		75.0	$11,216	$1,039	$10,177
East Yancey Middle	Public	6-8	285 Georges Fork Road	Burnsville	28714	Yancey County	Yancey County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 682-2281	259	20	13.0	98.8%	209 (80.7%)	2 (0.8%)	46 (17.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	46.2	424^th of 773 public middle schools	45.1%		64.4	256^th of 793 public middle schools	67.7%	168		38.6	52.3	65.1		44.6	37.2	53.0		67.5	$10,320	$1,091	$9,229
Mitchell Middle School	Public	6-8	5035 S 226 Hwy Ste B	Bakersville	28705	Mitchell County	Mitchell County Schools	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(828) 766-3340	380	27	14.0	97.4%	304 (80.0%)	1 (0.3%)	61 (16.1%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.9%)								(n/a)		32.1	39.1	34.8		40.5	38.3	52.2		61.4
North Windy Ridge Intermediate	Public	5-6	20 Doan Road	Weaverville	28787	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 658-1892	487	33	14.8	98.2%	370 (76.0%)	5 (1.0%)	93 (19.1%)	4 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (2.7%)								(n/a)	66.5	66.8			61.9	61.3			67.2		$9,704	$1,139	$8,564
North Buncombe Middle	Public	7-8	51 N Buncombe School Road	Weaverville	28787	Buncombe County	Buncombe County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 645-7944	516	36	14.4	98.8%	413 (80.0%)	2 (0.4%)	72 (14.0%)	4 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (4.7%)	72.9	182^nd of 773 public middle schools	76.5%		80.1	131^st of 793 public middle schools	83.5%	51			75.0	61.0			60.7	53.7		74.0	$9,771	$846	$8,925
Madison Middle School	Public	6-8	95 Upper Brush Creek Rd	Marshall	28753	Madison County	Madison County Schools	No	No	No	No	(828) 649-2269	468	40	11.8	99.4%	422 (90.2%)	2 (0.4%)	28 (6.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (2.8%)	56.5	310^th of 773 public middle schools	59.9%		71.7	194^th of 793 public middle schools	75.5%	116		60.8	51.7	42.9		56.6	50.3	57.4		69.3	$10,566	$689	$9,878

Frequently Asked Questions about Cane River Middle

How many students attend Cane River Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 210 students attended Cane River Middle.

Is Cane River Middle a good school?

Cane River Middle ranks 341^st of 773 North Carolina middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What district is Cane River Middle in?

Yancey County Schools

What is the racial makeup of Cane River Middle?

Students at Cane River Middle are 89% White, 9% Hispanic, 2% Two or more races.

Rate Cane River Middle!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

NCNorth Carolina Middle School Rankings

NCNorth Carolina District Rankings

Schools in Burnsville, NC

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Cane River Middle!

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.